Rogue
You're gonna find a number of outfits that covet our skills. Adventurers, SI:7... heck, even the disorganized rabble wouldn't mind a spy or two inside Stormwind. But you remember this: You're your own man. Don't let nobody bully you into doing something you don't wanna do! Besides, we hold all the cards... at least, we do before the game's done.
— Jorik Kerridan
Signaling for her companions to wait, a female orc creeps forward through the dungeon hall. She presses an ear to the door, then pulls out a set of tools to pick it in the blink of an eye. Before disappearing into the shadows as her warrior friend moves forward to kick the door open.
A human lurks in the shadows of an alley while his accomplice prepares for her part in the ambush. When their target passes the alleyway, the accomplice cries out, the slaver comes to investigate, and the assassin's blade cuts his throat before he can make a sound.
Suppressing a giggle, a gnome silently sneaks up behind a guard, lifting the key ring from the his belt. In a moment, the keys are in her hand, the cell door is open, and she and her companions are free to make their escape.
Rogues rely on skill, stealth, and their foes' vulnerabilities to get the upper hand in any situation. They have a knack for finding the solution to just about any problem, demonstrating a resourcefulness and versatility that is the cornerstone of any successful adventuring party.
A Simple Code
For rogues, the only code is the contract, and their honor is purchased in gold. Free from the constraints of a conscience, these mercenaries rely on brutal and efficient tactics. Lethal assassins and masters of stealth, they will approach their marks from behind, piercing a vital organ and vanishing into the shadows before the victim hits the ground. Rogues can dip their weapons in paralyzing toxins that render foes unable to defend themselves. These silent stalkers wear leather armor so they can move unencumbered, ensuring that they land the first strike.
With the rogue’s poisons and speed, the first strike is often the last step before the killing blow.
Rogues fend for themselves, looking for fights in which they dictate the terms. They’re the shadows in the night that remain unseen until the right moment comes to strike, then they dispatch an opponent with quick blade work or a deadly toxin snuck acutely into the bloodstream. Rogues are opportunistic thieves, bandits, and assassins, but there’s an unparalleled art to what they do.
Skill and Precision
Rogues devote as much effort to mastering the use of a variety of skills as they do to perfecting their combat abilities, giving them a broad expertise that few other characters can match. Many rogues focus on stealth and deception, while others refine the skills that help them in a dungeon environment, such as climbing, finding and disarming traps, and opening locks.
When it comes to combat, rogues prioritize cunning over brute strength. A rogue would rather make one precise strike, placing it exactly where the attack will hurt the target most, than wear an opponent down with a barrage of attacks. Rogues have an almost supernatural knack for avoiding danger, and a few learn magical tricks to supplement their other abilities.
The Rogue
| Level | Proficiency Bonus |
Features | Vigor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | +2 | Expertise, Secret Missives | 1 | |
| 2nd | +2 | Finishing Move, Cunning Action |
1 | |
| 3rd | +2 | Roguish Archetype | 1 | |
| 4th | +2 | Ability Score Improvement | 1 | |
| 5th | +3 | Extra Attack, Uncanny Dodge | 2 | |
| 6th | +3 | Expertise | 2 | |
| 7th | +3 | Evasion | 2 | |
| 8th | +3 | Ability Score Improvement | 2 | |
| 9th | +4 | Roguish Archetype feature | 3 | |
| 10th | +4 | Fleet Footed | 3 | |
| 11th | +4 | Reliable Talent | 3 | |
| 12th | +4 | Ability Score Improvement | 3 | |
| 13th | +5 | Roguish Archetype feature | 4 | |
| 14th | +5 | Blindsense | 4 | |
| 15th | +5 | Anticipation | 4 | |
| 16th | +5 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | |
| 17th | +6 | Roguish Archetype feature | 5 | |
| 18th | +6 | Elusive | 5 | |
| 19th | +6 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | |
| 20th | +6 | Stroke of Luck | 5 |
Creating a Rogue
As you create your rogue character, consider the charac-ter's relationship to the law. Do you have a criminal past, or present? Are you on the run from the law or from an angry thieves' guild master? or did you leave your guild in search of bigger risks and bigger rewards? Is it greed that drives you in your adventurers, or some other desire or ideal?
What was the trigger that led you away from your previous life? Did a great con or heist gone terribly wrong cause you to reevaluate your career? Maybe you were lucky and successful robbery gave you the coin you needed to escape the squalor of your life. Did wanderlust finally call you away from your home? Perhaps you suddenly found yourself cut off from your family or your mentor, and you had to find a new means of support. Or maybe you made a new friend, who showed you new possibilities for earning a living and employing your particular talents.
Quick Build
You can make a rogue quickly by following these suggestions. First, Dexterity should be your highest ability score. Make intelligence your next highest if you want to excel at Investigation. Choose Charisma instead if you plan to emphasize deception and social interaction.
Class Features
As a rogue, you gain the following class features.
Hit Points
- Hit Dice: 1d8 per rogue level
- Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier
- Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per rogue level after 1st
Proficiencies
- Armor: Light armor
- Weapons: Simple weapons, hand crossbows,
longswords, rapiers, shortswords - Tools: Thieves' tools
- Saving Throws: Dexterity, Intelligence
- Skills: Choose four from Acrobatics, Athletics, Deception, Insight, Intimidation, Investigation, Perception, Performance, Persuasion, Sleight of Hand, and Stealth
Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- (a) a rapier or (b) a shortsword
- (a) a shortbow and quiver of 20 arrows or (b) a shortsword
- (a) a burglar's pack or (b) a dungeoneer's pack, or (c) an explorer's pack
- Leather armor, two daggers, and thieves' tools
Expertise
At 1st level, choose two of your skill proficiencies, or one of your skill proficiencies and your proficiency with thieves' tools. Your proficiency bonus is doubled for ability checks you make that uses either of the chosen proficiencies.
At 6th level, you can choose two more of your proficien-cies (in skills or with thieves' tools) to gain this benefit.
Secret Missives
During your rogue training you learned how to conceal messages, instructions, and simple ideas in plain sight. You do so by weaving subtle jargon and motions in seemingly normal dialogue, sharing statements with hidden meanings or even by writing cryptic code.
You can use 4 hours to share a set of such rules with another creature, allowing you to weave secret messages and commands in your conversations and letters. More elaborate rules may require an Intelligence check at your DM's discretion.
Finishing Move
At 2nd level, you learn to exploit the openings you make in a foe's defenses. Once per turn, immediately after you hit a creature with an attack, you can use your bonus action to make another attack with advantage against the creature and perform a combo move. Both of these attacks must use a light or finesse weapon.
You deal normal weapon damage on a successful hit, and perform a known combo move of your choice. You do not add your ability modifier to the damage of this attack. You start knowing three combo moves: Eviscerate, Expose Armor, and Garrote. You learn more combo moves as you gaain levels in this class.
The amount of extra damage dealt by your combo moves increases as you gain levels in this class, as shown in the Vigor column of the Rogue table.
Some of your combo moves require your target to make a saving throw to resist the move's effects. The saving throw DC is calculated as follows:
Combo save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus +
your Dexterity modifier
Eviscerate
Your attack deals an extra 1d12 damage to the target for each point of vigor.
Expose Armor
Your attack deals an extra 1d4 damage to the target for each point of vigor, and weapon attacks against the target have advantage until the start of your next turn.
Garrote
Your attack deals an extra 1d6 damage to the target for each point of vigor, and the target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be unable to speak until the end of its next turn.
Cunning Action
Starting at 2nd level, your quick thinking and agility allow you to move and act quickly. You can take a bonus action on each of your turns in combat. This action can be used only to take the Dash, Disengage, or Hide action.
Roguish Archetype
At 3rd level, you choose an area to specialize yourself within, that shapes your rogue abilities: Assassin, Outlaw, or Subtlety, all detailed at the end of the class description. Your specialization choice grants you features at 3rd level and then again at 9th, 13th, and 17th level.
Ability Score Improvement
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.
Extra Attack
Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
Uncanny Dodge
Starting at 5th level, when an attacker that you can see hits you with an attack, you can use your reaction to halve the attack's damage against you.
Evasion
At 7th level, you can nimbly dodge out of the way of certain area effects, such as a red dragon's fiery breath or an ice storm spell. When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.
Fleet Footed
Starting at 10th level, your speed increases by 10 feet while you aren't wearing medium or heavy armor.
Reliable Talent
By 11th level, you have refined your chosen skills until they approach perfection. Whenever you make an ability check that lets you add your proficiency bonus, you can treat a d20 roll of 9 or lower as a 10.
Blindsense
Starting at 14th level, if you are able to hear, you are aware of the location of any hidden or invisible creatures within 10 feet of you.
Anticipation
At 15th level, you are always surveying your enemies and looking for openings. In combat, you get a second reaction that you can take once per round. You can use this second reaction only to make an opportunity attack, and you can't use it on the same turn that you take your normal reaction.
Elusive
Beginning at 18th level, you are so evasive that attackers rarely gain the upper hand against you. No attack roll has advantage against you while you aren't incapacitated.
Stroke of Luck
At 20th level, you have an uncanny knack for succeeding when you need to. If your attack misses a target within range, you can turn the miss into a hit. Alternatively. if you fail an ability check, you can treat the d20 roll as a 20.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Roguish Archtypes
Rogues have many features in common, including their emphasis on perfecting their skills, their precise and deadly approach to combat, and their increasingly quick reflexes. But different rogues steer those talents in varying directi-ons, embodied by the rogue specializations.
Assassin
You focus your training on the grim art of death. Favoring stealth and vicious poisons over direct approaches. Those who adhere to this specialization are diverse: hired killers, spies, and bounty hunters. Stealth, and poison help you eliminate your foes with deadly efficiency.
Bonus Proficiency
When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with the poisoner's kit.
Assassin's Intuition
Starting at 3rd level, you are at your deadliest when you get the drop on your enemy. You have advantage on attack rolls against any creature that hasn't taken an action in the combat yet. In addition, your first hit against a creature on the first round of each combat deals additional weapon damage equal to your Rogue level.
Combo Move: Envenom
Also at 3rd level, you learn the following combo move.
Envenom. Your attack deals an extra 1d8 poison
damage to the target for each point of vigor, and the
target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw
or be poisoned until the start of your next turn.
Vendetta
Beginning at 9th level, you are able to make the most of an opportune moment. When you take the Attack action on your turn and score a critical hit with a weapon attack, you may make another weapon attack as part of the same Attack action.
Additionally, when a target that you can see within reach is hit by a critical weapon attack made by another creature, you may use your reaction to make an opportunity attack against that target.
Venomous Wounds
Upon reaching 13th level, when you use your Envenom combo move and successfully poison a creature, the creature gains disadvantage on one ability saving throw of your choice until the start of your next turn.
Seal Fate
At 17th level, you have become a master of instant death. When you hit a creature with a weapon attack, you can force it to make a Constitution saving throw against a DC of 8 + your Dexterity modifier + your proficiency bonus. On a failed save, the damage of your attack is doubled.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
Outlaw
You hone your skills in larcenous arts. Burglars, bandits, pirates, and other criminals typically follow this specializa-tion, but so do rogues who prefer to not fight fair, using dirty tricks to gain the upper hand in combat. They care little for discretion, and happily engages in brawls head on.
Bonus Proficiency
When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with handgun firearms.
Additionally, being within 5 feet of a hostile creature doesn't impose disadvantage on your handgun attack rolls.
Hit and Run
At 3rd level, you learn how to land a strike and slip
away without reprisal. During your turn, if you make a melee attack against a creature, that creature can't make opportunity attacks against you for the rest of your turn.
Combo Move: Point Blank
Also at 3rd level, you learn the following combo move. In order to use this combo move, you must wield a handgun or have an empty hand able to draw one.
Point Blank. Your handgun deals an additional damage die for each point of vigor. If the target of your Point Blank combo move is within 5 feet of you, it must also succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be incapacitated until the start of your next turn.
Riposte
Beginning at 9th level, you have become quick and deadly with your weapons. Once per turn, when a creature within 5 feet of you misses you with an attack, you may deal 1d4 damage to the creature. This damage is dealt as the damage type of a melee weapon you're wielding.
Misdirection
Starting at 13th level, you are able to avert attacks meant for you and turn them against others. When you are hit by an attack roll and there is a creature within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to have the attack hit the creature instead of you.
You can use this feature twice. You regain all spent uses when you finish a short or long rest.
Adrenaline Rush
At 17th level, you are able to let the thrill of the moment heighten your senses. As a bonus action on your turn, you may give yourself the benefits of a haste spell for 1 minute.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
Subtlety
Subtlety rogues are the masters of the shadows, and they strike unseen. They don’t have the lethal strikes of the assassin or the brawling prowess of the outlaw, but their ability to hide in plain sight are unrivaled, performing devastating strikes, and slipping away to strike again.
Vanish
When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you become adept at eluding the gaze of weakened targets. Immediately after you hit a creature with a finishing move, you may vanish from their sight. While vanished, you are considered invisible to that creature until the start of your next turn, or until you attack or cast a spell.
Additionally, you have advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide.
Combo Move: Nightblade
Also at 3rd level, you learn the following combo move.
Nightblade. Your attack deals an extra 1d8 necrotic damage for each point of vigor, and the target must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or have its speed halved until the start of your next turn.
Shadowstep
Starting at 9th level, you can use a bonus action to teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of another creature that you can see. You have advantage on the first attack roll you make against that creature before the end of your turn.
You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier. You regain all spent uses when you finish a short or long rest.
Cloak of Shadows
At 13th level, your ability to sway the shadows enables you to lessen the harm done to you. When you take damage from an attack, you can use your reaction to give yourself resistance to all of the attack's damage on this turn.
Veil of Deceit
At 17th level, your thoughts can't be read by telepathy or other means, unless you allow it. You can present false thoughts by succeeding on a Charisma (Deception) check contested by the mind reader's Wisdom (Insight) check.
Additionally, no matter what you say, magic that would determine if you are telling the truth indicates you are being truthful if you so choose, and you can't be compelled to tell the truth by magic.
Firearms
| Name | Cost | Damage | Weight | Properties | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Handguns | ||||||
| Dragon | 50 gp | 1d10 piercing | 2 lb. | Ammunition (range 20/30 ), light, scattershot (1d6) | ||
| Pepperbox | 125 gp | 1d8 piercing | 3 lb. | Ammunition (range 20/80), light, multi-barrel (3) | ||
| Pistol | 75 gp | 1d8 piercing | 2 lb. | Ammunition (range 30/120), light | ||
| Pistol, silent | 90 gp | 1d8 piercing | 2 lb. | Ammunition (range 20/80), light, suppressor | ||
| Long Guns | ||||||
| Blunderbuss | 75 gp | 3d4 piercing | 5 lb. | Ammunition (range 30/45), two-handed, scattershot (1d8) | ||
| Musket | 100 gp | 1d12 piercing | 6 lb. | Ammunition (range 60/240), two-handed | ||
| Musket, double | 150 gp | 1d12 piercing | 7 lb. | Ammunition (range 60/240), two-handed, multi-barrel (2) |
Firearms
For tinkers the invention of the crossbow was not enough. They strived to further improve the ability to shoot from a distance without the aid of magic. With the invention of black powder, the dwarves of Ironforge were quick to act in experimenting with its uses, crafting the first firearms from which the weapon has evolved around.
Firearm Proficiency
Your race, class, and feats can grant you proficiency with certain firearms, or firearms as a whole.
Proficiency with a firearm allows you to add your proficiency bonus to the attack roll for any attack you make with them. If you make an attack roll using a firearm with which you lack proficiency, you do not add your proficiency bonus to the attack roll.
A firearm is considered a ranged weapon, and therefore, uses your Dexterity modifier for the attack and damage rolls you make with it.
Reloading
Firearms are muzzle-loaded and each barrel of a firearm can only be fired once per turn, regardless of the number of attacks you can normally make. A firearm can actively be reloaded on your turn by using an action or bonus action.
Booming Sound
Firearms make loud noises, a flash of light and a faint smell of burnt explosives when used. A shot can be heard as far as 200 feet away from the shooter.
Gunsmith's Tools
A gunsmuth's tools enables a character to craft, modify and maintain firearms, as well as craft ammunition. It weights 10 lb. and costs 50 gp.
Crafting Firearms. If you are proficient with gunsmith's tools, you can create any firearm of your choice over the course of one workweek (5 days of 8 hours of work) spending gold equal to half the firearms cost in resources.
Crafting Ammunition. If you are proficient with gunsmith's tools, as part of a long rest, you can create batches of ammunition of 6 + double your proficiency bonus. Each batch requires 1 gp worth of material cost.
Some weapons are capable of firing pellet shells, special ammunition designed to spread into a volley of shots. You can create batches of pellet shells of 3 + your proficiency bonus. Each batch requires 1 gp worth of materials.
Firearm Properties
Firearms have special properties related to their use that are unique to them, as shown in the Weapons table.
Ammunition. Firearms use precisely crafted bullets as ammunition. each time you attack with a firearm, you expend one bullet. There is no means of recovering bullets once they have been fired.
Multi-barrels. You can attack with the weapon multiple times before reloading. The number of barrels the weapon has is indicated in parenthesis.
Scattershot. This weapon can fire special pellet shells that spread into a volley of shots rather than a single one, making it easier to hit far away targets with at least one pellet. Targets within the first half of your short range take one extra damage dice and you have advantage on attack rolls made against targets beyond that, up to the weapons long range—which doesn't incur you disadvantage. When shooting a scattershot, it deals the damage dice indicated in parenthesis, rather than its normal damage.
Suppressor. The weapon makes no sound and light when used, and thus, ignores the booming sound rules.